DPA Warns On Hajj By Road

[Richard Akindele]

Pilgrims undertaking hajj by road should be wary. The Directorate of Pilgrims Affairs said yesterday it has not approved any travel agency to make the trip and neither has the Saudi authorities, a statement to Daily Trust said. The Saudi authorities say they will only accept 80,000 pilgrims this year from Nigeria and only those with arrangements made through licensed tour groups may be let in.

The public relations officer of the DPA, Umar Bala, said reports in the media about Hajj by road are premature. He said: Last month, The Islamic Trust of Nigeria headed by Dr,. Shehu Ado, said it has concluded "all necessary arrangements" to commence Hajj by road during the 2006/2007 pilgrimage. Umar added that the admittance of Nigerian pilgrims into Saudi Arabia for Hajj is guided by a memorandum of understanding (MOU), signed between both countries.

The MOU allows 65,000 pilgrims to be admitted into the kingdom through the arrangements by government and another 15,000 through regi stered tour operators. As at this time, over thirty duly registered tour operators have applied and taken up the total slots allocated to them. He advised the general public to ask questions before patronising any organization purporting to be arranging Hajj by road.

Meanwhile, the Saudi authority has approved six airlines submitted to them by Nigeria's government for screening for the 2006/2007 hajj operations, after the approval by aviation ministry of Nigeria. This was disclosed by the public relations officer of the Directorate of Pilgrims Affairs (DPA), Umar Bala. Those airl-ines according to him are, Kabo, Virgin Nigeria, Meridian, EAS (Nicon Airways), Mangal Airlines. Others are Skygate International Airline and Knight Airline which is shortlisted as auxiliary. He added that the approved airlines have been forwarded to the state pilgrims board to enable them choose among those airlines that will airlift pilgrims to Saudi Arabia for this year's hajj. He also appealed to state pilgrims board to send names of their nominations to the DPA on or before September 15, 2006, stating that the inaugural flight is expected to take off on December 4, 2006.

Daily Trust.